The Congolese government has reportedly set aside $2m for the festivities. Guests of honour will include a high-level Belgian delegation, headed by King Albert II, who will be on his first official visit to the former colony. With these festivities in the air, how has the first half-century of independence been for the Democratic Republic of the Congo?
One thing that can be said with some confidence is that they have been troubled - from the western-backed murder of independence leader Patrice Lumumba, through the long and repressive Mobutu Sese Seko dictatorship, to the second Congo war. Today, a stability of sorts has descended upon the country with its elected dictator, Joseph Kabila, although fighting continues in a number of provinces, particularly in the east. Despite its enormous mineral wealth, the DRC is one of the poorest countries in the world, largely due to the uncontrolled plundering of its resources. With a per-capita GDP of around $100 per year, it comes close to the bottom of the well-being league, though its human development index is constantly rising.
